For Old Lang Syne
by Enochian Whisperer
Summary: Dean takes Castiel to Times Square for the New Years' Ball Drop. /1st person narrative as Dean Winchester.


I knew that taking Cas to New York was a stupid idea. I knew it, and I had taken him with me anyway. It's not often that we get to enjoy the finer things in life, but man, I needed a vacation from hunting. So I took one. Sam did too. We spent Christmas together, holed up in yet another dingy motel room. I was really hoping that Cas would have joined us, but all at once, I'm glad he didn't show. Christmas is kinda a huge deal upstairs, so I'm pretty sure he was obligated to be present for the angel headcount anyway. Plus, I didn't want Sam getting any ideas off of me hinging on a friggin' angel. So it was just me and him. Which was nice, even though we're almost always glued to each other. But hey, when you don't have a whole lot, you hold on to what little you've got. Sammy's all I got, and I ain't gonna start complaining now. So yeah, we spent Christmas together. We exchanged gifts again, minus Christmas wrap. Sam loaded me up with new issues of _Busty Asian Beauties, _a six-pack of Bud Light, motor oil, and a new wrench set. I got him a (used) iPod and downloaded some of the trashy songs that he likes, that way he won't have to let his ears bleed while I'm driving. ...It's the thought that counts.

Those mags haven't been touched yet. I wonder how long it'll take Sam to notice, but lately, I just haven't felt the zest to scope naked Asian ladies. Sorry, ladies. I dunno. For once, I just don't really feel like tainting the holiday season with that scanty crap. Now that I have my eyes on a better prize, all things considered. Maybe I'll pay more attention to the ladies when the season blows over. But right now, I had something else on my mind.

"Damn it, Cas," I muttered, huffing a steamed breath from my mouth. I hugged myself tight as I searched the crowds frantically for my best friend. I knew that taking Cas to New York was a stupid idea. I knew that taking Cas to New York on /_New Years Eve/_ was a whole _/stupider/_ idea. I had told that feather-brained idiot not to wander off. I had told that feather-brained idiot not to let go of my hand. I could barely hear myself think here. Times Square. The ball was dropping, and we were going to miss it if I didn't find him quick. Hundreds, if not thousands of people were lined up behind barriers, sporting all kinds of tacky 2014-themed gear: top hats, sunglasses, scarves, balloons, streamers, the works. The crowds swayed in flows of people adjusting, and the collective clamor on top of the band playing on-stage (_Lynyrd Skynyrd of all bands _was performing; for once, they actually were playing _real music _at the Ball Drop) was gonna drive me crazy. I asked people for Cas.

"Uh, excuse me, have you seen a man about yea-high in a beige trench coat?"

"Hey, I kinda lost my friend, he's got dark hair, about this tall, and he's wearing a beige trench coat. Have you seen him by any chance?"

"-got blue eyes, brownish-black hair, beige trench coat-"

"Beige trench coat–"

Nobody could help me. Either my description was too friggin' universal, or everyone was drunk and/or high on something. I even resorted to asking the on-duty officers for his whereabouts. They said they would keep an eye out for him. Well, at least I wasn't alone in my search anymore. I looked over my shoulder up at the giant sphere of sparkling lights, perched atop the famous Jumbo-Tron screen. It was descending slowly on the pole. Damn it. Two minutes and counting. Where the hell is Cas?

I, ever the desperate man, prayed.

"Cas, where the hell did you go?" I growled, frustrated, "I told you not to freaking wander off, for God's sake. C'mon man, we're gonna miss the Ball Drop if you don't poof your ass here right now."

Naturally, that didn't glean any sort of response from him. My insides were roiling. The clock was ticking. My eyes were darting all around frantically. I couldn't keep it swallowed down any more.

"CAS!"

My explosion didn't merit much feedback. The people around me were startled, but they were soon self-absorbed again. God damn it. I took off, searching and scanning however much my only-human eyes could. One minute. I was feeling a mixture of things. They concocted that same exact feeling from some of my past hunts. The ones where me and Sam had to Luke Skywalker-aim-and-shoot through a pinhole of opportunity. Frustration, panic, stress, all of the exact crap that I _didn't _need to be feeling right here, right now. Thirty seconds. My heart was racing. What if something had happened to him? Maybe he got his ass hauled back to the Pearly Gates by the God Squad. That possibility sent a flash of burning heat washing through my veins. I swear, if those dicks nabbed my angel-

...

Mine?

My anger was cresting. I could feel it. Twenty seconds. Twenty seconds, and I couldn't find Cas. The hope was seeping out of me. I could feel that too. I would need a miracle at this point. My shoulders sagged, and I heaved a sigh of defeat. I scanned the riling crowd. Everyone was pushing forward to get closer to the Jumbo-Tron. Like moths to a flame, excitement rippled all around me, and the noise-

I found him.

I pushed and shoved.

_**"TEN!"**_

He was facing away from me.

_**"NINE!"**_

"CAS!"

_**"EIGHT!"**_

"Move!" I grunted, shoving and wedging my way through.

_**"SEVEN!"**_

Closer.

_**"SIX!"**_

Closer–

_**"FIVE!"**_

"CAS!"

Closer-

_**"FOUR!"**_

Incredibly there was an open space all around him, almost as if Cas was somehow parting the waters in a raging sea. I couldn't tell, but he might have been praying. I couldn't see his hands.

_**"THREE!"**_

He was still facing away from me.

_**"TWO!"**_

I understood what he was doing. He was lost. He was accumulating a sense of peace. He was in distress and had built his own bubble of self-assurance. He was waiting to be found. I broke the barrier.

_**"ONE!"**_

I grabbed him.

It happened so fast, yet the way I swung him around to catch his shocked blue eyes, the way they caught the city lights, and the way his lips parted to say my name– It was perfect, it was vivid, and it was _now._

We joined with thunderous peals of lights flaring and a multitudinous choir of joyous people all around us, screaming _Happy New Year_. Colorful bits of paper drifted down from the buildings all around us. The giant glass sphere now touched-down, sparkled and shimmered in a strobe of fantastic colors. _2014_ dazzled us all. But of course, I didn't notice any of these things right away. I was too busy claiming my own little slice of Heaven. It felt wonderful. I could have stayed here, kissing my angel the whole night, except I– nevermind. I didn't care that Cas and I were caught on-camera as some same-sex couple promotion in the nationwide broadcast courtesy of FOX News. I didn't care that Sam was possibly seeing this all the way across the country in Reno, Nevada, on TV. I didn't care. I held Cas close to me, arms locked tightly around him, and I felt myself swaying us both gently to the most beautiful song to grace my ears.

_Should old acquaintance be forgot,_

_And never brought to mind?_

_Should old acquaintance be forgot,_

_And old lang syne?_

_For old lang syne, my dear,  
For old lang syne,  
We'll take a cup of kindness yet,  
For old lang syne._


End file.
